Vol. XVIII 



iqoi 



"I General Notes. 1 89 



Habits of the Gooney. — My attention has been called to recent notes by 

 Messrs. Henshaw and Mead on the habits of a Pacific species of Albatross, 

 or Gooney, as the species of Diomedea are almost universally called by 

 sailors in the North Pacific. 



As to whether the species roost on the yards of vessels or spend the 

 night resting on the water, I can say that I have never known an Alba- 

 tross to attempt to alight on the spars of a ship, and I very much doubt 

 their so doing although Gulls and Boobies often rest for hours on the 

 yards or in the shrouds. I have often beguiled the weary hours of a ' trick ' 

 on deck at night, by watching the albatrosses as they tacked to and fro in 

 the wake of the vessel. When there was sufficient moonlight I have seen 

 them pass and light near the course of the vessel, and then, after hav- 

 ing dropped astern some distance, they would come straggling along to 

 pass and alight as before. Even on the darkest nights they may sometimes 

 be seen against the sky as they follow in the wake of vessels, and it is my 

 opinion that they follow until they feel the need of rest, probably several 

 days, and make no attempt to find a vessel that has passed beyond the limits 

 of their horizon. 



Gulls also will, at times, follow the same vessel for several days if the 

 course taken is near the coast, but they soon drop the deep sea craft. I 

 once noted a Lartis glaucesccns with distinctive markings which fol- 

 lowed the coast steamer from San Diego to San Francisco for nearly three 

 days. — A. W. Anthony, Portland., Oregofi. 



Audubon's Shearwater {Puffinus audubont) on the Coast of Virginia. — 

 A Shearwater from Cobb's Island, sent me several years ago by Capt. C. 

 H. Crumb, taken, according to the label, on September i, 1S93, proves to 

 be of this species. 



For the following additional particulars regarding these Shearwaters, 

 I am indebted to Mr. William Palmer. Mr. Palmer informs me that dur- 

 ing his return voyage from Havana, last August, on the way north to 

 Cape Hatteras, great numbers of them were to be seen for about a day and 

 a half. Early in October, Mr. Palmer again saw several at Virginia 

 Beach, Va. It seems possible that this bird may occur not infrequently 

 off the Virginia coast. —William C. Rives, M. D., Washington, D. C. 



The Mexican Cormorant in Colorado. — A specimen of this species 

 (P/ialacrocoraiX tnexicauus), an adult male, was taken Oct. 15, 1S99. at 

 Smith's Lake, fourteen miles north of Denver, Colorado. — A. H. Felger, 

 Denver, Colorado. 



A Virginia Record for the American Eider {Somateria dresseri). — 

 On Dec. 28, 1900, a female American Eider {Somateria dresseri) was 

 taken on Broadwater Bay, near Cobb's Island, Virginia. So far as I am 

 able to learn this bird has not been previously recorded south of the Capes 

 of Delaware. — Henry Bryant Bigelow, Cokasset, Mass. 



